Antarctica is a place of extremes. It is the coldest, highest, driest and windiest continent on Earth. Antarctica is a continent (cover) by an inland ice sheet up to 4.8km thick, (hold) about 90% of the world's fresh water. The ice sheet is heavy that it has pushed the land below sea level in places.
The South Pole is 1, 235km from the closest coastline and is located high on the polar plateau ( 高原) (height 2, 800m). Here it may be as cold as - 75℃ , but the world's (low) temperature record is from an even more remote Antarctic station, Vostok, recorded a temperature of -89℃.
Only about 0.4% of the surface of Antarctica is free snow and ice. The tops of mountains stick up through the ice — the highest is Mount Vinson, 4,900m above sea level.
Over the past few decades, Britain (play) a major role in the exploration and study of Antarctica. Captain James Cook was the first person (cross) the Antarctic circle in 1770s. Later explorations involved searching for commercial ( 商业的) opportunities, usually hunting for seals or whales. At the start of the twentieth century, (explore) Scott and Shackleton made scientific explorations, a tradition which continues to the present.
